Why I Hate “Fun”
“Is it fun?” is the question I dread the most when coming up with new game ideas. Many gaming academics have attempted to define what fun is. Designer Marc LeBlanc breaks down fun into eight categories: Sensation, Fellowship, Fantasy, Discovery, Narrative, Expression, Challenge, and Submission.8 Although the classification of fun is an interesting exercise, I don’t find it that helpful “in the field.” There are always problems. For example, a game idea (or mechanic or boss fight or whatever) can sound fun on paper but may not be fun when you get it working in the game. Or it may work, but only be fun to you.
The problem with fun is, like humor, it is completely subjective. You can try to skew the odds in your favor by basing your game on existing, proven gameplay style, but more often than not, you end up with a “clone” game. Look at how many lousy first person shooters and survival horror games have been...